Azarath, Methrion, Zinthos.
Raven continued to meditate without her powers. Her mind focused on her enemies game in play.
If I could just get rid of this... thing... on my neck. I could end Slade and all his evil just like I did with my father.
"You can never be rid of me dear daughter," A terrifying, familiar voice echoed through her mind forcing her eyes wide open in a panic.
You're not here. That's impossible. I destroyed you! Raven thought to herself.
"My physical form may have been eradicated... but evil... Pure evil... is not something you can destroy." Trigon made it very clear to his forsaken daughter that he was very much alive.
No! I don't believe you! This is just a trick! Raven cried out in her mind.
"You may have been able to subdue me... but I have always been here... Within you." He continued.
Then why now? Why are you here? How did you come back?! Raven demanded answers.
"Your power was far stronger than I ever anticipated but luckily my former minion sealed your powers allowing me to return to my beloved daughter." He explained.
"NO!" Raven shouted out loud, "WHATEVER YOU WANT I WON'T HELP YOU!"
"You misunderstand me. I don't want YOUR help. I wish to help YOU." His voice was dark yet convincing. It was hard to tell if he was being genuine but with Trigon's reputation it was most likely a lie to get what he wanted, "you wish to be free of these chains do you not? I can break them. I can set you loose upon your enemies. That is what you desire is it not?"
Raven sat for moment in silence and closed her eyes. She was stronger than she was last time she faced her father. She could defeat him again if she wanted. But then why would he help her? Why would he want to help Raven defeat her enemies?
She refused to believe any good would come of this. Memories of her father torturing her friends and obliterating everything she ever loved rushed through her mind. She grit her teeth and her rage began to boil.
"I would rather die... Than EVER get help from you." She spat through her teeth.
Trigon's laughter filled the room around her. It was dark and evil like he had accomplished some hidden motive.
"Suit yourself girl," he mocked with an evil chuckle, "but the side of you I created won't be contained forever. My evil WILL be set free once more and when it is... you will watch as I end the life of those closest to you. Starting with... him."
"GET OUT!" Raven screamed at the top of her lungs. When she opened her eyes the room was silent around her. Her father's voice was gone and she was alone once more.
She took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm her racing heart. When she finally calmed down she closed her eyes again and continued meditating. This time she focused on Beastboy. She pictured his face. His smile. His goofy quirks. She desperately wanted to be wrapped in his arms after what she just experienced.
She let out a deep exhale and sat up up straight in her pose.
Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos.
Beastboy... please be careful. She thought to herself.
Not long after she continued meditating, her concentration was interrupted again but this time it was the loud bang of something in the walls. She looked up at the top of the massive door with an overkill of locking mechanisms on the other side, to see a ventilation duct had been closed off immediately followed by the loud sound of some metallic scrapping through the wall as if it were shot from the duct.
A crash in the room on the other side of the massive door made her rise to her feet. She began to worry. Thoughts of Beastboy's attempted rescue failing made her anxious with fear.
She waited in silence and held her breath as she listened for any signs of him.
She started moving towards the door when the chains flexed and cuffs pulled on her wrists stopping her a few feet away from it. She looked back at the chains in frustration then back at the door and continued listening.
A loud trumpet from what she imagined was an elephant roared through the door and all her suspicions were confirmed. Beastboy was there on the other side of this two foot thick piece of iron. She reached out to the door as if trying to extend her hand to him but she staggered back as a cushing thud impacted the door nearly making her jump out of her shoes.
She didn't see this as a good sign. He was fighting someone. Her mind began racing as her heart beat faster and faster.
What if he loses? What if I can't save him?
Fear coursed up her spine making her blood run cold. But a sliver of hope remained as she continued to listen to the ensuing battle outside the door.
But her greatest fears were confirmed when a loud screech from what could only be Beastboy's velociraptor became muffled and disappeared followed by Slades voice from the vents...
"You never learn do you?"
In the city the three Titans held the center of the city where they intended to bear down and hold off the hoard as long as they could. By the way things were going it looked like this could very well be the end.
"According to my sensors this is the center of the city!" Cyborg announced, "unless we missed some they should all be within a half mile of us!"
"I believe we have gotten all of them!" Starfire shouted from above. She looked down on their grave situation. Robin and Cyborg were back to back as hundreds of omnidroids circled them closing in slowly as if preparing a coordinated attack. The buildings around them had creatures standing on top of them looking down at their prey. A few the bulidings were ablaze but not out of control as if the fire had recently just gained some strength.
Starfire flew down and landed at her teammates sides shifting the other two so all three of them were backed agaisnt each other.
Robin held his staff with his jaw clenched and look of fierce determination on his face but even he couldn't think of a way out of this one.
"Any ideas?!" Robin shouted to his friends.
"What?! You don't have a plan?!" Cyborg screamed in fear. He lifted his sonic cannon towards the hoard, closing in like zombies.
"I'm open to suggestions!" Robin yelled back. An iron creature lunged at him as he finished and Robin ducked under its strike posting up on his staff and extended his legs with a loud war cry, landing two heel kicks to its chest sending it soaring through the air back into the others.
"We'll just have to hold them off until Beastboy comes back with Raven!" Robin concluded.
The creatures all started rushing towards them in a fury. Cyborg and Starfire began blasting left and right trying to stagger them back as much as they could while Robin let loose as many explosives as he could.
Cyborg then looked down at his arm and an idea popped into his head.
"These things are all robots!" He said looking over his shoulder at Robin.
"What's your point?!" Robin said angrily as he didn't want to be distracted from his current battle with a brick omnidroid.
"I have a 50,000 watt power cell strong enough to power a skyscraper! If I boost the amplitude of my sonic cannon and trigger a blown fuse, the EMP could wipe out anything electronic in a 2 mile radius!" He shouted as he looked back at his advancing targets.
"But you are also mechanical!" Starfire argued. She let out a barrage of starbolts at a wooden omnidroid dismembering its limbs and leaving it in a pile... only to see it turn into the asphalt of the street and generate brand new limbs, "you would also be, the wiped out!" She finished, sharing her concern.
"Starfire's right!" Robin agreed as he continued exchanging blows with the brick creature sending it back to its friends, "it's too risky! We'll have to find another way!"
Cyborg looked over his shoulder at his friends. Time slowed in his eyes as he watched his friends fighting tooth and nail to survive. When he looked back at his cannon he knew there was only one thing they could do... Or rather... One thing he could do to save them.
The cold floor of the abandoned broadcasting station was extremely uncomfortable to Beastboy. He couldn't tell if it was because he just had 100,000 volts sent though his body once again or if he was just getting tired of finding himself laying on the ground helplessly at the feet of his enemies. Slade most of all.
"I was expecting some kind of rescue attempt," Slade started, "but I wasn't expecting a solo rescue. Let alone a rescue so well thought out as to use the vents," Slade sounded like he was bluffing, "that is... Until I came to the realization of this blossoming romance between you and Raven." He turned to face his victim laying in front of him, "I had to make a few changes to accommodate your skills. Lucky for me... I had an expert on you." His voice showed signs of smirking underneath his mask as he looked at his accomplice next to him.
Rouge had a sickening grin on her face as if she were about take some kind of twisted pleasure in ending Beastboy's life. Yet Slade was holding her back. He wanted to make this last. With the other Titans facing his army and Terra no where in sight he could enjoy this and take his time doing it.
"Let... Raven... Go..." Beastboy said inbetween breaths. He was exhausted like his body had just run a marathon.
"On the contrary," Slade shot back, "Raven will be staying with me." He began walking to the dark corner of the room where he picked up a small metal case like a box and placed it in front of Beastboy. He leaned over Beastboy and wshipered with a sinster slur in his voice, "I have plans for her..."
With the push of a button on the case it sprang up from the ground and revealed a very familiar sight that shot chills up Beastboy's spine. Hanging in front of him was the very suit of armor that Terra had once worn before when she was under his control. Only this time it had a slim metallic helmet and shaded red lenses covering the eyes.
"My bad luck with apprentices will finally end. This suit will control her completely. Her body. Her mind. Her soul... Will all be mine." Slade squint his eye at Beastboy emphasizing his seriousness, "I will have the most powerful being in existence at my fingertips. And together... we will be unstoppable."
"Raven... Will never... Be controlled by someone like you," Beastboy wheezed, "she's stronger than you think!"
"Is she?" Slade challenged, "why don't we put that to the test?"
Slade picked the helmet off the stand and walked towards the immense metal door. He placed his hand on the wall beside it and a scanner flared with beeps and scans and after a few seconds the annoying amount of locks began clicking and unlocking allowing the door to swing freely revealing Raven, with the collar around her neck still glowing with white letters, standing a few feet from the door. Tears instantly appeared in her eyes as she looked past the villains at Beastboy on the floor.
"Hello my dear," Slade said with a dark scowl.
"Don't you touch her!" Beastboy screamed. His adrenaline began to pulse as he struggled to get to his knees with a loud groan.
"I'm the least of your worries," Slade mocked, "soon she will be the one you should worry about." He gestured to Raven.
Rouge moved past him into the dim room gripping Raven's wrists and holding them behind her back.
Raven let out a small moan of pain as the discomfort from Rouge became apparent to her.
"I SAID DON'T TOUCH HER!" Beastboy's anger began to boil over as he finally got to his knees.
Raven's thoughts began to cloud her judgement. How could she get out of this? Her father offered her help but he promised to slaughter everyone she loved. But if she didn't risk it she could be enslaved to someone just as bad if not worse.
Father... Raven said in her mind as Slade inched closer and closer holding the red eyed helmet.
"Give me control, child," Trigon Respond.
I... I...
Slade lifted the Helmet over Raven's head.
I...
Before Raven could finish an ear splitting roar cried out across the room stopping everyone where they stood to look back at the origin of the horrifying sound.
Beastboy's eyes went completely black as if a demon possessed him. His teeth grew sharp as daggers and his body began to increase in size triggering the collar to send 100,000 volts through his nervous system.
His claws grew long and pointed as the size of his hands rivaled that of a gorilla's. He screeched in pain as his transformation continued with the blue sparks of electricity coursing into his body.
The whole room watched in awe as this... thing... This beast... continued to fight the power of the collar. The power of electricity so strong, no living thing on earth should be able to withstand it.
Beastboy slowly reached up to the collar using every last bit of strength he had just to grip it with his newly formed massive claws. And with loud, painful roar his arms extended in opposite directions snapping the collar off him like twig.
Beastboy had only ever taken this form when absolutely necessary. His most powerful and versatile form he had. He became the beast within himself. The Werebeast.
He fell to his knees breathing heavily and his rage consumed him as he wrapped his head around his task at hand.
Save her. No matter what it takes. Save her.
He lift his head to the sky, spreading his elbows apart behind him, and let out a fierce howl that sent a chill down Slade's spine.
"How did - UGAAHH" Before he could finish Beastboy had jumped and pushed off the wall behind him like a spring board, propelling him like a missile straight at Slade.
While in mid air he spun his feet around landing a heavy drop-kick with both feet. The impact sent Slade shooting across the room with such speed and force he hit the wall on the other side, denting the concrete. He stuck to the wall for a moment before falling face first the floor along with bits and pieces of rubble from the wall. He had let go of the helmet when Beastboy hit him and it gently drifted through the air landing next to him softly.
Beastboy now stood where Slade was and his gaze instantly turned to Madam Rouge who eyes went wide with fear. She's never seen Beastboy take this form. She had no idea how to fight something so fast and so strong. She immediately released Raven and turned her attention to the Werebeast in front of her.
Rouge let out a loud grunt as she swung a quick fist through the air but in the blink of an eye, Beastboy dodged her attack and got close into her personal space putting himself in between her and Raven. He moved so fast she couldn't even react to the three strikes he landed one after another.
The first was an uppercut from his right claw, followed by a left hook and finished with a round house kick from his right leg which he landed in her ribcage. Such a kick lifted Rouge off her feet sending her through the doorway back into the other room where she bounced off the floor and into the wall that Beastboy had crashed into earlier.
Rouge groaned with pain as she lifted her head. In front of her face was the collar Beastboy had ripped off a moment ago. As she began to reach for it she found herself wailing in pain as Beastboy had dashed across the room stepping on her forearm with a crunch.
Like Rouge... Slade had also come-to. He looked up to see Rouge wailing in pain in the other room and to his right he saw the helmet he had been holding a moment ago. He realized he had one chance to win this fight and reached out to the helmet.
Beastboy reached down with his left hand, grabbed the back of Rouge's latex shirt and lifted her into the air like she was nothing but a toy doll. He immediately sent a right hook across her jaw sending her across the room into another wall.
Rouge fell from the wall and hit the floor with a loud thud then remained still as she moaned in pain.
Beastboy let out a loud and triumphant howl as he raised his head to the sky once more.
"This isn't it over yet!" Slade said confidently.
"Beastboy!" Raven shouted as if pleading for help. Raven was struggling to get out of a head lock Slade had her in.
Beastboy turned and his eyes went wide. He made eye contact with Raven just as Slade slid the helmet over her head. The red lenses covered her eyes breaking her eye contact with Beastboy.
The earth stood still in that moment. After a second the red lenses lit up and began to glow and Raven stopped struggling agaisnt Slade.
"Now heed my every command," Slade said pulling a remote from his pocket. He pressed a single button. The collar and chains around Raven's neck and wrists unlocked and fell to the floor. The glowing letters faded and dark flames raged around Raven as her powers returned...
Slade stood behind Raven as he had once done with Terra. He fold his hands behind his back and tilted his head towards Beastboy with the most evil sounding tone anyone had ever heard from him...
"Destroy him."